Guides

Short, practical answers for a night or a day under the sky. Each guide lists the sources it is based on.

• How to watch a meteor shower

  When to go out, where to go, and why the Moon matters more than the shower’s name.

• Eclipse glasses: how to tell if yours are safe

  What the ISO 12312-2 label does and does not prove, where to buy, and three checks you can do at home.

• How to read an aurora forecast

  What the Kp number means, how far south each level reaches, and the best hours and seasons to look.

• Northern lights: where and when it is worth going

  Seven places and the months each one is dark enough, calculated by us.

• Northern lights tours: what to check before you book

  Chase or camp, group size, what happens if there is no aurora, and when to go.

• Stargazing trips: the darkest skies, and when to go

  Five dark-sky places with the moonless weeks of the coming year, calculated by us.

• Planning a trip for the 2027 eclipse

  A step-by-step checklist, from picking a spot inside the path to glasses and paperwork.

• Smart telescopes: what they can and cannot do

  How app-controlled telescopes work, what they show well, and how the main models compare.

• Every eclipse to 2030, and what your city sees

  Solar and lunar eclipses with what 47 cities get from each, calculated by us.